Geography of Afghanistan: relief, climate, nature, population. School encyclopedia Afghanistan geographic location

Borders

Afghanistan located in Southwest Asia, between 60°30" and 75° East longitude and 20°21" and 38°30" North latitude, mainly within the northeastern part of the Iranian Highlands.

Relief

Mountains and plateaus occupy 80% of the territory, rocky deserts and dry steppes are located in most of the country. The Hindu Kush mountain system runs through Afghanistan from northeast to southwest and divides it into 3 main physical and geographical regions: 1. central mountains, 2. northern plains and 3. southwestern plateau. Reaching the area about 160 km north of Kabul, the Hindu Kush is divided into several large mountain ranges: Baba, Bayan, Shefid-Kuh (Paropamiz), etc. These ranges, in turn, branch into several smaller spurs going in different directions. Other important ranges include Siah-Kuh, Khesar, Malmand, Khakbad, etc. The mountain ranges that run along the eastern border of the country and through Pakistan effectively block Afghanistan from the penetration of moist air masses from the Indian Ocean, which explains the dryness of the climate.

The Hindu Kush mountain system is essentially a continuation of the Himalayas. The area of ​​the Central Mountains region is 414,000 km². This area is characterized by deep and narrow valleys, rather high mountains (some peaks exceed 6400 m above sea level), high passes (located mainly at an altitude between 3600 and 4600 m). Many of the passes are of the utmost strategic importance, such as the Shebar Pass, located northwest of Kabul, where the Baba Ridge diverges from the Hindu Kush system; one can also note the Khyber Pass, located on the border with Pakistan, southeast of Kabul.

The foothills and plains of the north of the country stretch from the border with Iran to the foothills of the Pamirs on the border with Tajikistan. This area has an area of ​​about 103,000 km² and is part of a much larger region that continues along the Amu Darya River to the north. The plains of the north of the country are relatively densely populated, the average height of the region above sea level is about 600 m. A significant part of the Bactrian Plain is occupied by semi-deserts.

The plateau in the southwest of the country has an average altitude of about 900 m above sea level and covers an area of ​​about 130,000 km². Most of this territory is occupied by deserts and semi-deserts, the most significant of which are the sandy Registan desert and the clay-gravelly Dashti-Margo desert.

Inland waters

Almost the entire territory of the country belongs to the area with internal flow, only a small part along the border with Pakistan (about 83,000 km²) has a flow to the Indian Ocean. So, the Kabul River flows into the Indus already on the territory of Pakistan, which in turn carries its waters to the Arabian Sea. All other major rivers originate in the mountains in the center of the country and either flow into lakes or get lost in desert areas. The rivers in the northeast of Afghanistan belong to the Amudarya (Pyanj) basin. In the west of the country, near the border with Iran, there are several fairly large salt lakes. There are also small lakes in the mountainous regions, in the central part of Afghanistan.

The entire territory of Afghanistan is characterized by high seismic activity, especially strong in some areas of Badakhshan, Balochistan and Kabul. Earthquakes of various strengths are extremely frequent.

The territory of the country is rich in minerals. The reserves of iron, chromites, gold, lead, copper have been explored, but their quantity has not been estimated, and extraction is difficult due to the location of the deposits in remote mountainous areas. Sulfur, table salt and lapis lazuli are mined from non-metallic minerals. Afghanistan is the only major supplier of lapis lazuli to the world market. There is a large natural gas field in the Shibirgan area (136 billion cubic meters)

Climate

Afghanistan is characterized by a continental climate with large seasonal and daily temperature ranges. In the plains, the average January temperatures range from 0 to 8°C, the average July temperatures: from 24 to 32°C. In Kabul, the average temperature in July is 25°C, in January: -3°C. Highland areas, especially in the north-east of the country, are characterized by particularly severe winters, where winter temperatures can drop below -20C°.

The amount of precipitation in the mountains increases in the direction from west to east and averages about 400 mm per year, and in the east it reaches 800 mm. The mountainous regions along the border with Pakistan are in the monsoon zone. The largest annual rainfall is observed in the area of ​​the Salang Pass in the Hindu Kush, where it can reach 1350 mm. On the plains, on average, about 200 mm of precipitation falls; in the most arid regions in the west and southwest of the country, it can be less than 75 mm.

Soils

In the foothills and mountain valleys - chestnut soils, brown soils and gray soils; on the mountain slopes, which receive a large amount of precipitation, there are chernozems and mountain meadow soils. In the southwestern part of the country - barren desert soils, which are partially saline. The most fertile soils are characteristic of the plains in northern Afghanistan.

Nature

Environmental problems

Afghanistan's major environmental problems predate the political upheavals of recent decades. The pastures of the country are suffering from overgrazing, which is only intensified due to the rapid growth of the population. Environmental issues and economic interests in Afghanistan often diverge, while about 80% of the population depends on agriculture or livestock, which means that the environmental situation directly affects the economic well-being of people. In 2007, the World Health Organization published a report placing Afghanistan in last place among all non-African countries as the country with the highest mortality from adverse environmental factors.

Deforestation is an important environmental problem. Wood in Afghanistan is widely used as a fuel. In addition, forests are being cleared for new pastures and illegal logging. Deforestation poses a serious threat to agriculture, making land less productive. Also, the loss of vegetation creates a high risk of flooding, which in turn threatens both people and agricultural land. Another important problem in Afghanistan is desertification, which is caused by the loss of natural vegetation and soil erosion.

The main causes of air pollution are significantly higher vehicle emissions compared to those in developed countries, as well as the burning of wood as a fuel. At the same time, unlike many other countries in Asia, air pollution is not a particularly serious problem in Afghanistan due to the almost complete absence of industry and not too much transport. An environmental problem is the complete lack of wastewater treatment in the cities of the country, including in its capital - the city of Kabul. Much of the city's water supply is contaminated with E. coli and other dangerous bacteria. A problem in cities is also household waste, the disposal of which to special landfills is often not organized. For storage of waste, territories not created for this purpose near cities are used. This raises the issue of pollution of both river and groundwater with waste.

Afghanistan (officially - the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan) - a state in the Middle East, has no access to the sea. One of the poorest countries in the world. Over the past 34 years (since 1978) the country has been in a civil war.
It borders with Iran in the west, Pakistan - in the south and east, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan - in the north, China - in the easternmost part of the country.
Afghanistan is at the crossroads between East and West and is an ancient center of trade and migration. Its geopolitical location is between South and Central Asia on the one hand and the Middle East on the other, which allows it to play an important role in economic, political and cultural relations between the countries of the region.

Drug production
Map of Afghanistan published by the United Nations. It shows the levels of risk, regional security and drug production.

At the end of August 2008, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) published its annual report on opium poppy production in Afghanistan, which states: “No other country in the world, except China in the middle of the 19th century, produced as many drugs as modern Afghanistan. ".
After the invasion of US and NATO troops, drug production increased several times. Today, it is Russia and the EU countries that are the main victims of heroin coming from Afghanistan. It is noted that the rapid growth of drug consumption in Russia in the past ten years has occurred precisely due to drug trafficking from Afghanistan.
According to UNODC, more than 90% of the opium entering the world market is already produced in Afghanistan. The area of ​​opium plantations is 193 thousand hectares. The income of the Afghan "drug lords" in 2007 exceeded 3 billion dollars (which, according to various estimates, ranges from 10% to 15% of Afghanistan's official GDP). Opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan now exceeds coca cultivation in Colombia, Peru and Bolivia combined. In 2006, the country produced 6100 tons of opium, and in 2007 - a record harvest of 8000 tons.
At the same time, in the north and in the center, controlled by the government of Hamid Karzai, only 20% of the Afghan opium poppy is produced, and the rest is produced in the southern provinces on the border with Pakistan - the zone of operations of NATO and Taliban troops. The main center of drug production is Helmand province, a stronghold of the Taliban movement, where the planting area was 103,000 hectares.
Afghanistan is officially under the patronage of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan (ISAF) (to which the US transferred this responsibility after the official end of military operations), but the international forces have not been able to take control of the entire territory of Afghanistan, limiting their real influence mainly to Kabul and the surrounding area .
According to the UN, about 90% of drugs entering Europe are of Afghan origin. ISAF, for its part, verbally states that its troops are conducting a peacekeeping operation in Afghanistan and are ready to help the Afghan government in solving the drug problem, but this is primarily and mainly its own task.
Poppy cultivation is often the only source of income for Afghan farmers.
Afghanistan is the world's largest producer of opium; poppy cultivation decreased by 22% and 157,000 hectares in 2008, but remains at historically high levels; unfavorable growing conditions in 2008 reduced the harvest to 5,500 tons, down 31% from 2007. If the entire crop had been processed, about 648 tons of pure heroin would have been produced. The Taliban and other anti-government groups are directly involved in opium production and profit from the opium trade. Opium is a key source of income for the Taliban in Afghanistan. In 2008, the Taliban's drug revenue was $470 million. Pervasive corruption and instability in the state hamper the applied measures to combat drugs. Most of the heroin sold in Europe and East Asia is derived from Afghan opium (2008).
A number of experts believe that during the reign of the Taliban, the production of drugs was banned and suppressed, while after the introduction of US and NATO troops, the production and supply of drugs increased significantly and are controlled by them.
For example, Dosym Satpayev, director of the Kazakh consulting organization Risk Assessment Group, believes that Afghan groups opposed to the Taliban are producing drugs. By supporting them, NATO turns a blind eye to their drug activities.
Also, according to Michael Bernstam, a professor at Stanford University, the Taliban "prohibited drugs and severely punished", carrying out repression against drug producers. He accused NATO of "humanitarian treatment" of the drug-producing population.

Most of the territory of Afghanistan is occupied by mountains. The ranges of the Hindu Kush stretch from east to west (up to 6729 m), including a belt of eternal snows. In the southern part of the country there is the Ghazni-Kandahar plateau, and on the northern and southwestern outskirts there are desert plains. The vegetation is very diverse, but almost everywhere, even in the monsoon-affected southeast region, drought-resistant species predominate. Date palms, cypresses, olive trees, and citrus trees grow only in the irrigated Jalalabad Valley.

The first Afghan state formations emerged in the 16th century. In 1747-1818, the Durranian state existed. In the 19th century, England made several attempts to subjugate Afghanistan (the Anglo-Afghan wars). These attempts ended in failure, but the British achieved control over the foreign policy of Afghanistan. In 1919, the government of Amanullah Khan declared the independence of Afghanistan. In July 1973 Afghanistan was proclaimed a republic. In 1978, the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan carried out a coup d'état and proclaimed a course towards building socialism. The country began a civil war. In 1979, Soviet troops entered Afghanistan to help the PDPA hold on to power. Soon after the withdrawal of Soviet troops (1989), the Mujahideen, supporters of the Islamic state, came to power in 1992. However, the civil war did not end there: contradictions between individual Islamic groups led to more and more conflicts. In the mid-1990s, most of the territory of Afghanistan (including Kabul) came under the control of fundamentalists from the Taliban movement. In October 2001, the power of the Taliban, accused of complicity in world terrorism, was overthrown by the US and its allies.

The capital is the ancient city of Kabul (1.4 million people), favorably located at the crossroads of important transport routes. Other major cities are Mazar-i-Sharif, which has long been known as a center for handicraft production and trade with a colorful oriental bazaar; ancient Herat is an oasis and cultural center, where a giant Juma Masjid mosque was erected in the 15th century. Afghanistan is an agrarian country whose economy has always been based on grazing. The war that began in the late 1970s caused enormous damage to the country's economy, significantly destroying the existing agricultural infrastructure and destroying hundreds of libraries, schools, and hospitals.

- a state in the south-west of Central Asia. In the north it borders with Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, in the east - with China, India (disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir) and Pakistan, in the south - with Pakistan, in the west - with Iran.

The name of the country comes from the name of the legendary ancestor of the Afghans - Avgan.

Official name: Islamic Republic of Afghanistan

Capital: Kabul

The area of ​​the land: 647.5 thousand sq. km

Total population: 28.4 million people

Administrative division: The state is divided into 29 provinces (vilayats) and 2 districts of central subordination.

Form of government: Islamic state.

Head of State: The president.

Composition of the population: 38% - Pashtuns, 25% - Tajiks, 19% - Khazars, 6% - Uzbeks.

Official language: Pashto and Dari.

Religion: Islam (85% - Sunnis, 15% - Shiites).

Internet domain: .af

Mains voltage: ~220 V, 50 Hz

Phone country code: +93

Climate

The climate of Afghanistan is continental (with significant temperature ranges), dry. Average temperatures (in Celsius) in January on the plains range from 0° to 8° C (absolute minimum -25° C). Average July temperatures on the plains are 24–32°С, and the recorded absolute maximum temperature is +45°С (in Girishka, Helmand prov.). In Kabul, the average July temperature is + 25 ° C, January - 3 ° C. During the day, the weather is usually clear and sunny, and at night it is cool or cold.

The average annual precipitation is low: on the plains - about 200 mm, in the mountains - up to 800 mm. The rainy season in the plains of Afghanistan lasts from October to April. A specific moisture regime is manifested in the southeast of the country, where summer monsoons penetrate, bringing heavy rainfall in July-August. Thanks to the monsoons, the annual rainfall reaches 800 mm. In the southwest, in Sistan, in some places precipitation does not fall at all.

In deserts and arid plains, dry westerly winds often bring sandstorms, while the difference in air temperatures in the lowlands and in the mountains, as well as their abrupt change, causes the formation of strong local winds.

Geography

Afghanistan is located on the eastern flank of Southwest Asia, between longitudes 60°30 and 75°E and latitudes 20°21 and 38°30N. Has no access to the sea. Distance to the nearest sea coast (Persian Gulf) - 500 km.

In the west, Afghanistan borders on Iran (820 km), in the south and east - on Pakistan (2060 km) and India (about 120 km), in the northeast for a short distance - on China (75 km), as well as on Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan. The area of ​​the country is 655 thousand square meters. km

The length of the country from west to east is St. 1350 km, and from north to south St. 900 km. Afghanistan is a mountainous desert country located in the northeast of the Iranian Plateau, at its junction with the Central Asian mountain systems. In the northeast and in its center there are highlands and mountain ranges of medium height, bounded from the north, west and south by desert plains and plateaus.

Mountainous terrain occupies 80% of the country's territory.

Mountains: mountain systems - Hindu Kush (height 4-6 thousand m), Paropamiz (height up to 4 thousand m), South Turkestan mountains (height up to 4 thousand m), Suleiman mountains (height 3700 m), high-altitude plateau Khazarajat (600-900 m). Plains - South Turkestan (along the left bank of the Amu Darya River to the Afghan-Iranian border), South Afghan.

Typical for southern Afghanistan are rocky deserts - Dashti (Dashti-Naumid, Dash-ti-Margo, etc.), which resemble the gammads of the Sahara. Sometimes there are saline clayey deserts - kevirs. Examples of kevirs in Afghanistan are the Namakzar and Gaudí-Zirra depressions. The sandy deserts of Garmsir and Registan stretch along the Pakistani border. Areas with clayey soil are also widely represented, including takyrs, which are difficult to pass during periods of rain.

Flora and fauna

Vegetable world

The flora of Afghanistan is represented mainly by species of Iranian-Turanian origin, only in the extreme east do East Asian species begin to predominate. The total number of plant species in Afghanistan is at least 3.5 thousand, with the most richly represented families of Asteraceae, legumes, cruciferous. The largest number of endemic species belongs to the genera Astragalus, Oxytropis. ferula, cousinia.

The vegetation of Afghanistan is very diverse due to the significant latitudinal extent of the country and the manifestation of altitudinal zonality. But almost everywhere, even in the southeastern region, which is affected by monsoons, the vegetation cover of the country has one common feature - the predominance of xerophytic, drought-resistant species.

The unfavorable combination of high summer temperatures with insufficient rainfall causes sparse vegetation. The plains are dominated by desert ephemeral vegetation, in the northern part of the country sedges and bluegrass predominate, in the southern part - saltwort and wormwood, there are colocynths - wild bitter watermelons. On the plateaus, the most common steppe vegetation is made up of prickly pillows - astragalus, acantolimon, combined with juniper sparse forests and sparse thickets of pistachio.

In the dry, hilly steppes of the foothills of northern Afghanistan, rich herbaceous vegetation develops during the growing season. There are abundant pastures and hayfields of wheatgrass and bluegrass, in some places thickets of wormwood with patches of bulbous bluegrass dominate, and there is a lot of camel thorn.

Forests (oak, Himalayan cedar, pine, spruce, fir) occupy less than 5% of the country's area, mainly in the mountains, in the east. Forests have been preserved in inaccessible areas, poorly provided with roads.

In a number of areas of Afghanistan, the fishery of pistachios and edible nuts of the Gerard pine remains important. The latter resemble Siberian pine nuts, but have an elongated shape. Roasted, they are sold at city bazaars. The population collects the fruits of wild shrubs: barberry, sea buckthorn, blackberry, hazel, wild rose, pomegranate. Walnut fruits are also harvested in the forests, rosin, resin, gum, honey, and wax are harvested.

Animal world

The animal world consists of the following species - ungulates (wild goats, sheep, gazelles, saiga), predatory (snow leopard, leopard, wolf, fox, jackal), rodents, birds, reptiles, insects.

Of the ungulates, the wild ass, kulan, goitered gazelle, and saiga live on the plains. Wild boars graze in tugai and pistachios. Wild goats and rams live in the mountains, including the horned goat grazing on impregnable slopes, and the largest of the rams, the argali, adorned with magnificent twisted horns.

Of the predators in the tugai thickets, there are a fox, a reed cat, and a tiger is still preserved in the tugai of the Amu Darya. There are bears in the forests of Nuristan. Wolves are common in all regions of Afghanistan. They are especially dangerous in winter, when they come down from the mountains in flocks and enter the villages. Sheep herds suffer greatly from wolves, for the protection of which local shepherds keep large dogs such as wolfhounds.

There are a lot of rodents in Afghanistan: porcupines, hares, jerboas, marmots, voles.

Some animals, in particular predatory ones, are of commercial importance, their fur is exported. The population hunts ungulates mainly in winter, when there is less field work. The Muslim population considers wild boars "unclean animals" and does not consume their meat. Wild boars cause great damage to the economy, destroying crops.

Afghanistan lies on important bird migration routes. Late autumn and early spring are the main seasons for hunting birds, both waterfowl, common on the lakes of Sistan and in the valleys of the North Afghan rivers (where there are also many pheasants), and birds of stony habitats (partridges, bustards, desert chicken).

There are many reptiles in Afghanistan, among which are a gray monitor lizard, up to 1.5 m long, poisonous snakes: cobra, gyurza, efa, etc.

Among the many insects, malarial mosquitoes deserve mention (the inhabitants of the Afghan Turkestan Plain especially suffer from them), termites, which severely damage wooden structures, and arachnids: scorpions, tarantulas, karakurts, phalanges, argizida ticks (distributors of relapsing fever). The fields of Afghanistan are subject to devastating locust raids.

Attractions

Afghanistan is a very ancient country, first mentioned as part of Bactria in the chronicles of the 6th century BC. when it was incorporated into the Persian Achaemenid Empire. Around 330 B.C. e. the territory of modern Afghanistan became part of the empire of Alexander the Great, after whose death it was ruled by Greek, Indian, Iranian, Arab and Mongol rulers, who were replaced by the British protectorate.

It was on this land that Zoroastrianism was born, it was here, in the valleys of Bamiyan, that one of the centers of the formation of Buddhism was, it was here that Muslim cities of the classical period flourished, giving the world many sages and poets. Therefore, the number of the most diverse historical monuments that this land keeps in itself is simply enormous.

Consisting of two huge mountain ranges, the Hindu Kush is one of the most majestic and beautiful mountain ranges in the world. These beautiful mountains, valleys and lakes are completely untouched and can be a great area for hiking and climbing.

Currency

The monetary unit of Afghanistan is Afghani, equal to 100 pulas.

Useful information for tourists

In view of the turbulent situation and destruction during the fighting, the country is not popular with foreign tourists.

Authors: E. V. Baranchikov (General information), V. V. Maklakov (State system), A. I. Voropaev (Nature: physical and geographical sketch, Economy), V. E. Khain (Nature: geological structure and useful fossils), V. G. Korgun, T. K. Karaev (Historical essay), V. S. Nechaev (Health), A. L. Simakova (Education), A. S. Gerasimova (Literature), V. N. Yunusova (Music), K. E. Razlogov (Cinema)Authors: E. V. Baranchikov (General information), V. V. Maklakov (State system), A. I. Voropaev (Nature: physical and geographical essay, Economy); >>

AFGHANISTAN, Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.

General information

A. is a state in Southwest Asia. It borders in the north with Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, in the east with China and India, in the southeast and south with Pakistan, in the west with Iran. The area is 645.7 thousand km 2. Population 27.1 million people (2015, estimate). The capital is Kabul. The official languages ​​are Pashto and Dari. The monetary unit is the afghani. Administrative-territorial division: 34 wilayats (provinces) (Table 1).

Table 1. Administrative-territorial division (2015)

Vilayat	Area, thousand km 2	Population, thousand people	Administrative center
Baghlan	21,1	910,8	Puli Khumri
Badakhshan	44,1	951,0	Faizabad
badgis	20,6	496,0	Kalai-Nau
Balkh	17,2	1325,7	Mazar-i-Sharif
Bamiyan	14,2	447,2	Bamiyan
Wardak	8,9	596,3	Maidanshahr
Ghazni	22,9	1228,8	Ghazni
Herat	54,8	1890,2	Herat
Helmand	58,6	924,7	Lashkargah
Gore	36,5	690,3	Chaghcharan
Daykundi	8,1	424,3	Nili
Jowzjan	11,8	540,3	shibirgan
Zabul	17,3	304,1	Kalat
Kabul	4,5	4373,0	Kabul
Kandahar	54,0	1226,6	Kandahar
Kapisa	1,8	441,0	Mahmoud Raki
Kunar	4,9	450,7	Asadabad
Kunduz	8,0	1010,0	Kunduz
Lagman	3,8	445,6	Mehtarlam
Logar	3,9	393,0	Pulialam
Nangarhar	7,7	1517,4	Jalalabad
Nimruz	41,0	165,0	Zaranj
Nuristan	9,2	148,0	Parun
Paktika	19,5	434,7	Sharan
Paktia	6,4	552,0	Gardez
Panjshir	3,6	153,5	Bazarak
Parwan	6,0	664,5	Charikar
Samangan	11,3	387,9	Samangan (Aybak)
Sari Pul	16,0	559,6	Sari Pul
Takhar	12,3	983,3	Talukan
Uruzgan	22,7	386,8	Tarinkot
Farah	48,5	507,4	Farah
Faryab	20,3	998,1	Maiman
Host	4,2	574,6	Host

A. - member of the UN (1946), IMF (1955), IBRD (1955), Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO; 1992); observer in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO; 2012), CSTO (2013).

Political system

A. is a unitary state. The constitution was adopted on 16.1.2004. The form of government is a presidential republic.

The head of state and executive power is the president, elected for 5 years by direct elections (with the right of one re-election). The president has two vice presidents. Only a Muslim by religion, born of Afghan parents, can be president. The President is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. Its powers include the implementation of national policy, subject to approval by the National Assembly; appointment of ministers, director of the central bank, judges of the Supreme Court, prosecutor general, etc.

Legislative power belongs to the National Assembly, which consists of two chambers: the lower - the People's Chamber (Valesi Zhyurga) and the upper - the House of Elders (Meshrano Zhyurga). The People's Chamber (250 deputies) is elected by direct voting under the proportional system for 5 years; at least 64 deputies (2 from each province) must be women. The House of Elders includes an indefinite number of members (appointed by local officials, provincial and district councils, and the president). The House of Elders reviews laws, the country's budget, and international treaties after they are approved by the House of the People.

Executive power is exercised by the government - the cabinet of ministers (27 members appointed by the president with the approval of the National Assembly).

Nature

Relief

Azerbaijan is located in the northeast of the Iranian Highlands. The mountains cover approx. 3/4 of the country's territory (see map of Afghanistan). In the northeast, the ranges of the Hindu Kush mountain system stretch. The highest is the eastern part of the Hindu Kush with peaks above 6000 m [altitude up to 6843 m, Mount Tirgaran, according to other sources up to 7485 m; Mount Noushak (Noshak, Naushak) - the highest point of the country] and passes at an altitude of 3500–4600 m (the most important are Salang, Barogil, Khavak). Alpine ridges with narrow ridges, steep slopes, deep valleys and midlands with smoothed peaks and soft outlines are typical. Increased seismicity is characteristic, avalanches, screes and rockfalls often occur, and mudflows occur in the valleys. South of the Hindu Kush are Central Afghan mountains(Hazarajat), fan-shaped diverging to the southwest. In the northwest - the Paropamiz mountain system, consisting of a number of folded latitudinally elongated chains: the Bandi-Turkestan mountains (up to 3485 m), the Safedkokh axial ridge (Ferozkokh, up to 3371 m) and the Siakhkokh mountains, separated by river valleys. The foothills, covered by loess, pass in the north into Bactrian plain. Closer to the Amudarya valley, loess deposits are replaced by sands.

In the southeast is the Ghazni-Kandahar plateau (up to 3265 m high, Mount Khumbur-Khule-Gar), crossed by wide river valleys. The southern and southwestern parts are occupied by hilly plateaus up to 1200 m high with the clay-gravelly Dashti-Margo desert and the sandy Registan and Garmser deserts with loose dunes. Near the border with Pakistan there is a depression with a drying salt lake Gaudi-Zira, on the border with Iran there is a large Sistan basin, in which the deltas of the Helmand and other rivers flowing from the surrounding mountains are located. The lowest part of the depression is occupied by the fresh end lake Khamun. In the south - the Chagai Mountains (height 1729 m).

Geological structure and minerals

The territory of A. is mainly located within Alpine-Himalayan mobile belt. The northern part belongs to the southern margin of the young Turan platform (plate), deformed in the Oligocene - Quaternary due to the collision (collision) of the Indo-Australian and Eurasian lithospheric plates. The platform has a Paleozoic granite metamorphic basement and a Jurassic-Eocene sedimentary cover. Its southern part - the Bandi-Turkestan ridge - was drawn into uplifts, and the northern part - into subsidence with the formation of the Afghan-Tajik intermountain depression, filled with powerful Oligocene-Quaternary molasses. To the south of the Harirud (Main Hindu Kush) fault - in the narrow Bandi-Bayan zone - strongly dislocated Paleozoic formations can still be traced. To the south, the Farahrud zone stands out, on the site of which, starting from the Triassic, a branch of the Tethys oceanic basin existed. Fragments of its crust (ophiolites) and sedimentary fulfillment (Upper Triassic-Middle Jurassic shales and Upper Jurassic-Lower Cretaceous flysch) are developed. The strata are intensively deformed and intruded by granites. Southeast is the Central Afghan median massif (in the past - microcontinent in Tethys) with a heterogeneous Precambrian basement and a Phanerozoic cover. The southern part of the massif and the southwestern continuation of the Farakhrud zone are superimposed by the Seistan depression filled with Neogene-Quaternary molasses. To the south of it is the Chagai volcanoplutonic uplift, a link in the Cretaceous volcanic arc that borders the median massif from the east. In the east there is a large Chaman-Mukur submeridional fault ( shift), followed by the Katavaz Paleogene flysch trough and the Kabul Precambrian block. Northern Afghanistan is a highly seismic region. Destructive earthquakes - in 1993, 1998, 2002, 2015.

On the territory of Azerbaijan there are known deposits of oil (Angot), natural combustible gas (Dzharkuduk), and coal (Darayi-Suf). Large deposits of ores of iron (Khadjigek), copper (Ainak, one of the largest in South Asia), and rare metals (Darayi-Pich) have been explored. There are deposits of alluvial gold, ornamental and precious stones (the world's best lapis lazuli - the Sari-Sang deposit, marble onyx, jewelry tourmaline, ruby, emerald), as well as barite, sulfur, talc, magnesite, rock salt and other minerals.

Climate

On the territory of A. subtropical continental, dry climate. Climatic conditions change depending on the height of the terrain, in the mountains also - on the exposure of the slopes. The average air temperatures in January on the plains are from 0 to 8 °C, in the highlands in places below –20 °C (up to a height of 1300–1600 m above zero), in July 24–32 °C and 0–10 °C, respectively. In Kabul (at an altitude of 1791 m), the average temperature in January is -2.3 ° C, in July 25 ° C. In the deserts, 40–50 mm of precipitation falls annually, in the most arid regions in the west and southwest - 50–75 mm, on the plateaus - 200–250 mm, on the windward slopes of the Hindu Kush 400–600 mm, in the southeast of A. , where monsoons from the Indian Ocean penetrate, about 800 mm. The maximum precipitation occurs in winter and spring (except for the southeastern part). At an altitude of 3000–5000 m, the snow cover lasts for 6–8 months. The snow border lies on the northern slopes of the Hindu Kush at an altitude of 4700 m, on the southern slopes - about 5400 m, there are large glaciers on the alpine ridges. The plains are characterized by severe droughts, the frequency of which has increased in recent decades. Dust storms are characteristic of the south of Africa.

Inland waters

Most of the rivers belong to the area of ​​internal flow; the largest of them is the Amu Darya (in the upper reaches - the Pyanj) with tributaries of the Kokcha and Kunduz. 55% of water resources A are concentrated in the Amudarya basin. Other rivers flow into lakes (Helmand, Farah-Rud) or are lost in desert areas (Herirud, Murgab - on the territory of Turkmenistan, Balkh, etc.). The Indian Ocean basin belongs to the Kabul River (a tributary of the Indus). The mountains are characterized by a dense river network, 80% of the river flow is formed in the Hindu Kush, the rivers are fed mainly by melt waters of mountain snows and glaciers. The rivers of the plains are flooded in spring, they become shallow or dry up in summer, their waters are taken for irrigation. Mountain rivers have significant hydropower potential. There are few lakes; the largest are Navur, Abi-Istadai-Ghazni, and others. Small desert lakes dry up in summer (salt lakes turn into salt marshes). Groundwater in many regions of Azerbaijan is the main source of irrigation and watering of land, as well as water supply to settlements. Large artesian regions are North Afghan and South Afghan.

Annually renewable water resources - 65.33 km 3 (2011), water availability is low - 823 m 3 per person per year. The annual water intake is 20.28 km3, including 98% for the needs of agriculture, 1% for industry, and 1% for the domestic sector.

Soils, vegetation and wildlife

In the foothills and valleys, gray soils, brown desert-steppe soils and solonchaks are common. On the mountain slopes there are mountain gray soils and gray-brown soils. In the highlands - mountain meadow-steppe and mountain-meadow soils. Large areas are occupied by rocky-gravelly surfaces and sands.

3,500–4,000 species of vascular plants grow on the territory of Azerbaijan. The vegetation is predominantly desert and desert-steppe. Desert shrubs are typical - teresken, astragalus, cushion-shaped acantolimon, wormwood. Ephemeral sedge-bluegrass deserts with an abundance of early flowering ephemera are developed on the northern foothill plains. Above, desert-steppe types of communities with wormwood, bulbous bluegrass, and camel thorn are common. North Africa is an area of ​​the best pastures and arable land. At altitudes of 2000–2500 m, mainly in Paropamiz, there are juniper and pistachio woodlands. In the highlands, formations of upland xerophytes are represented. In the mountainous regions bordering Pakistan, at altitudes of 750–1500 m, steppes alternate with forests of Indian palm, acacia, fig, almond, up to a height of 2200–2400 m - forests of evergreen balut oak and Gerard pine, higher (up to 3500 m) - forests from Himalayan pine with an admixture of Himalayan cedar and West Himalayan fir. Thickets of juniper dwarf and rhododendron are common at altitudes of 3500–4000 m, and higher there are alpine and subalpine meadows. Tugai forests in the Amudarya valley. Closed forests occupy 2.1% of the territory, light forests and sparse thickets - 45.2% (2015).

The animal world is diverse. According to various estimates, 137–150 species of mammals, 428–515 species of birds, 92–112 species of reptiles, and 101–139 species of fish live in Azerbaijan. In the deserts and steppes, spotted hyenas, jackals, kulans, gazelles and saiga antelope are common, in the mountains - snow leopard, mountain goats, and argali. Afghan fox, stone marten, wolves are widespread. Wild boar and reed cat are found in tugai thickets. Under the threat of extinction - argali, snow leopard, etc. There are many reptiles (lizards, agamas, snakes, including poisonous ones - gyurza, cobra, efa, muzzle), rodents, insects, including agricultural. pests (locusts), and poisonous arachnids (scorpions, karakurt).

State and environmental protection

The ecological situation is tense. Seventy-five percent of the territory of Azerbaijan is subject to desertification, especially in the northern, western, and southern provinces. Among the main factors of desertification are overgrazing of livestock on scarce semi-desert pastures, plowing of sloping lands and soil degradation. Soils are severely depleted on 16% of the territory as a result of water and wind erosion, loss of fertility, and salinization.

Illegal harvesting and export of timber to Pakistan, collection of timber for fuel needs by the local population lead to deforestation of mountain slopes and destruction of light forests. The frequency of catastrophic landslides and floods has increased due to spring rains and accelerated snowmelt in the mountains. Uncontrolled hunting and trapping of large animals and birds are widespread.

On the territory of Armenia is the Bandi-Amir National Park, located at the source of the river of the same name and preserving the ecosystems of high-mountainous dry steppes and lakes on the slopes of the Hindu Kush spurs. 2 waterfowl sanctuaries (Abi-Istadayi-Ghazni and Navur) and 2 sanctuaries (Adjar Valley and Greater Pamir). 6 OPTs are occupied by St. 258 thousand hectares. It is planned to create 8 more protected natural areas.

Population

Between 38 and 50% of the population of Afghanistan (2014) are Pashtuns, predominant in the west, south and east of the country. In the south (south of the provinces of Nimruz, Helmand and Kandahar), there are also Western Balochs (over 1%) and Brahuis (over 1%). Tajiks predominate in the north (from 18 to 27%, mainly in the provinces of Herat, Bamiyan, Samangan, Baghlan, Takhar, Badakhshan, Panjshir, Parvan, Kabul), Hazaras (from 8 to 19%, mainly in the provinces of Badghis, Ghor, Daykundi, Uruzgan, Ghazni, Bamiyan, Baghlan), as well as firuzkuhi (4%, in mostly provinces Ghor, south of Badghis province and east of Herat province), Uzbeks (from 6 to 9%, mainly in the provinces of Faryab, Jawzjan, Sari-Pul, Balkh, Samangan, Kunduz, Baghlan, north of Takhar province), Turkmens (2.5%, mainly north of the province of Faryab, Jowzjan, Balkh). Taimen live in the west (2%, west of the provinces of Farah and Herat) and Jemshids (north of the province of Herat), in the northeast - Pamir peoples(east of Badakhshan province) and Nuristani(Province of Nuristan). There are also Persians (3%) and others.

A characteristic feature of the A. population is its young composition (cf. age 18.4 years); St. 41.5% - young people up to 15 years old inclusive, people over 65 years old - 2.6%. In 2015, the population growth of A. was estimated at 2.32%. Birth rate 38.6, death rate 13.9 per 1000 inhabitants. With a high fertility rate (5.33 children per 1 woman), infant mortality is high (115.08 per 1000 live births). The average life expectancy of the population is 50.9 years (men - 49.5, women - 52.3 years). There are 105 women for every 100 men. The average population density is 42.0 people / km 2. The most densely populated east (971.8 people/km2 in Kabul vilayat) and the north of the country (wilayats adjacent to the Pyanj River), the least deserted south-west (4.0 people/km2 in Nimruz vilayat). Approx. 28% of the population. The mass migration of rural residents to cities began in the 1960s. in connection with the construction of new roads and accelerated industrial development. Largest cities (thousand people, 2012–13): Kabul 3289, Kandahar 491.2, Herat 436.4, Mazar-i-Sharif 368.1. Afghan conflict 1979–89 and the civil war led to significant migrations both abroad (about 1/3 of the population left the country) and within Azerbaijan (the population of the capital more than doubled between 1985 and 1995). The largest number of refugees settled in Iran and Pakistan (4-6 million people; after a partial return, more than 2 million people remained). Economically active population 8.0 mln. (2013). The structure of the employed (%, 2008–09): agriculture 78.6, services 15.7, industry and construction 5.7. Official unemployment rate 35% (2008). 36% of the population lives below the poverty line (2008–09).

Religion

The absolute majority of the inhabitants are Muslims; of them ok. 80% - Sunnis, approx. 19% are Shiites (2014, estimate). Shiism is distributed mainly among the Hazaras and Tajiks, most of the Afghan Shiites are Imamis. Punjabis and Sindhis living in Kabul and Kandahar practice Sikhism and Hinduism. Christians, including Catholics and representatives of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Jews, Zoroastrians (Parsis) and Bahais are few in number.

In pre-Christian times Zoroastrianism and Buddhism were practiced in Armenia. On the territory of A. (in Bamiyan) there were statues of the Buddha, which were a Buddhist shrine included in the list world heritage; in 2001 were destroyed by the Taliban. Christian communities arose in the 3rd-4th centuries. in the western part of modern Armenia, which was part of the Sassanid state. Nestorianism and Monophysitism became widespread. In the 7th-10th centuries. As a result of the Arab conquests, the majority of the population of Azerbaijan converted to Islam, but Christianity remained on the territory of the state until the 2nd half. 14th c. In the 20th century small communities of Catholics and Protestants (Anglicans, Evangelical Christians, and Seventh-day Adventists) reappeared in Africa. On the territory of Azerbaijan there are large Muslim pilgrimage centers (including one of the alleged burial places in Mazar-i-Sharif Ali ibn Abi Talib).

The current constitution of Azerbaijan (2004) declares Islam the state religion, and at the same time guarantees the followers of other religions the right to practice their rituals within the framework established by law.

Historical outline

Afghanistan in Antiquity and the Middle Ages

According to archaeological data, the northern part of the territory of modern Armenia was inhabited by people in the Paleolithic (Kara-Kamar cave, ca. 40-30 thousand years BC), southern. part - in the Bronze Age (4th-2nd millennium BC). In the 1st floor. 1st millennium BC e. development of oasis agriculture.

In the beginning. 1st millennium BC e. On the territory of modern Africa, state formations were formed, the most significant of which was Bactria. In the 6th c. BC e. these lands were included Achaemenid states. In the 4th c. BC e. armies invaded A. from Persia Alexander the Great. After the collapse of his empire, on the territory of modern Africa, a Greco-Bactrian kingdom, captured to the con. 1 in. BC e. nomadic Kushans (Yuechji), who created their powerful state with a center in the north of A. In the era of the Great Kushans (end of the 1st-4th centuries AD, see. Kushan kingdom) developed urban culture and crafts, international trade. Buddhism was proclaimed the state religion. The conquest of part of the territory of Armenia by the Hephthalites and the undermining of the power of the Kushans by the Sassanids led to political fragmentation. Part of the local rulers obeyed Turkic Khaganate, the other part - to the Sassanids. This period was accompanied by the decline of cities and the strengthening of the influence of the dynasties of local landowners.

In the 7th–8th centuries b. part of the territory of Azerbaijan was invaded by the Arabs who brought Islam. Within the Caliphate, this territory was ruled by the dynasties of governors - Tahirids, Saffarids, Samanids (since 900). To replace the Arabs in the 10th century. came the Central Asian Turks. One of their leaders Sultan Mahmud created in the 11th century. empire of the Ghaznavids, which included Iran, south of Cf. Asia and northwestern Hindustan. The Ghazni-Kandahar Plateau, as well as the Suleiman Mountains and the Quetta-Pishin Highlands became the main territories for the formation of the Afghan people. The Afghan ethnogenesis also included Bactrians, Sakas, and Hephthalites, and later Indian, Tajik, and possibly Turkic elements. The first mentions of the Afghans (Abghan, Afghan) are found in sources from the 3rd to 6th centuries.

In the 13th century the economic and cultural development of the Afghan lands was stopped by the invasion of the hordes of Genghis Khan, which also led to the formation in the 14-15 centuries. new nationality - the Khazarians. The negative consequences of Mongol expansion were not completely overcome in Azerbaijan and during the Timurid era (late 14th–early 16th centuries), although the collapse of Timur’s empire after his death (1405) did not prevent his successors Shakhrukh and Sultan Hussein Baykar from creating a prosperous state in Khorasan with its capital in Herat. The revival of the economic and cultural life of western Armenia under the Timurids attracted in the 16th century. attention mughal and Safavids: in the 16th–17th centuries. the former held the southeast of Afghanistan in vassalage, while the latter conquered the south and west of present-day Afghan territories. A long struggle against foreign power (including the Roshanite movement) created the preconditions for the unification of the Afghan tribes. In the beginning. 18th century during the uprisings against the Great Moghuls and Safavids, an independent Ghilzai principality in Kandahar and the principality of the Abdali tribe in Herat arose. In the 1730s they were conquered by Nadir Shah, but after his death (1747) his state fell apart.

Afghanistan in mid. 18 - beg. 20th century

Oct. 1747 The leaders of the Pashtun tribes elected the commander Ahmad Khan as their leader. under the name Ahmad Shah Durrani he stood at the head of the first independent Afg. state - the Durranian state with its capital in Kandahar. Ahmad Shah annexed Ghazni, Kabul, Peshawar, and then Herat to his possessions. Following this, it included Khorasan, Balochistan (as a vassal possession), Punjab (Punjab; was soon lost), Kashmir and Sindh. Under him, the Durranian state became the largest state in the Middle East, but under the successors of Ahmad Shah (Timur Shah and Zaman Shah), its gradual decentralization began in the course of civil strife. In 1818, the collapse of the state led to the formation of independent possessions - Herat, Kandahar, Kabul and Peshawar principalities. Nevertheless, the experience of the stay of the Afghan tribes in the system of the state of Ahmad Shah created favorable conditions for their subsequent consolidation around the Kabul principality under the leadership of his emir Dost Muhammad (since 1834). The reunification of the Afghan tribes was interrupted by the British colonialists, whose boundaries of possessions were already approaching the Afghan lands. In 1838, under the pretext of ensuring the security of the territories subject to it, the troops of the English East India Company occupied Kandahar and Kabul, thereby starting the first of Anglo-Afghan wars . A powerful popular movement in 1841-42 led to the collapse of the British occupation and forced the British troops to leave A. In the 1850s. Dost Muhammad continued to gather the disparate regions of Afghanistan: he subjugated the northern regions (Afghan Turkestan), annexed Kandahar (1855) and Herat (1863). However, he was forced to simultaneously confirm the rights of the English East India Company to Peshawar and other Afghan regions captured earlier (see. Anglo-Afghan treaties and agreements 1855, 1879, 1893, 1905).

Under the successor of Dost Muhammad, Sher Ali Khan (reigned 1863–66, 1868–79), the regions of the left bank of the Amu Darya and Badakhshan were annexed to the Afghan state. Sher Ali Khan strengthened the central government, enlarged the army, carried out a number of administrative, military and financial reforms. Its transformations were interrupted by the 2nd Anglo-Afghan war, launched by Great Britain in 1878 in the conditions of acute rivalry with Russia in Central Asia. The stubborn resistance of the Afghan tribes forced British politicians to abandon their plans to extend their influence to Afghanistan. Despite the signing of the Gandamak Treaty of 1879, which effectively deprived Afghanistan of its independence, British control over the country remained fragile.

In 1880, the British were forced to recognize the grandson of Dost Muhammad, Emir of Afghanistan - Abdurrahman. Arriving in Afghanistan from Russia, where he was in exile, he was able to gather a tribal militia and extend his power to Kandahar and Herat. After the defeat of the British troops by the ruler of Herat, Muhammad Ayub Khan at Maiwand (1880), they left the country (1881). However, in 1893, Emir Abdurrahman was forced to agree to the annexation of the territories of the eastern Pashtun tribes, previously torn away from Afghanistan, to the British possessions, and to recognize the so-called. the Durand Line as the border between Afghanistan and British India.

During the years of his reign (1880-1901), Emir Abdurrahman consistently pursued a policy of consolidating Afghan lands and strengthening the central government throughout the country. He managed to suppress the uprisings of the Pashtun tribes and the Khazars, occupied Kafiristan, a semi-independent region in the east of Afghanistan, and contributed to the Islamization of the local population (kafirs), recreated the regular Afghan army, streamlined taxation and the administrative apparatus, and improved the communications system. Under Abdurrahman, the territory of Azerbaijan was delimited from the possessions of Russia and Great Britain. Despite the “closure” of Azerbaijan to the outside world, carried out by both Abdurrahman and the British, cities grew in Azerbaijan, the specialization of agriculture increased, the internal market developed, and signs of the Europeanization of public life appeared.

During the reign of Abdurrahman's successor, Emir Khabibullah (1901–19), Armenia continued to remain isolated in foreign policy. At the same time, the sovereignty of the country was infringed upon by the agreement between Great Britain and Russia (1907) on the division of spheres of influence in Iran, Asia, and Tibet. In the beginning. 20th century the creation of secular educational institutions of the European type activated socio-political thought. During these years, an opposition movement of the Young Afghans appeared in Azerbaijan, demanding genuine independence, the adoption of a constitution, and the implementation of reforms. Their inspirer and ideological leader was the educator and publicist Mahmud-bek Tarzi.

During World War I, despite pressure from Germany and its allies, A. strictly adhered to a policy of neutrality.

Afghanistan in the 1920s–60s

After the end of the First World War, the positions of national-patriotic circles in Azerbaijan became stronger. Emir's reign Amanullah Khan(1919–29) was marked by the restoration of Afghan independence. During the 3rd Anglo-Afghan War, the British government recognized the sovereignty of the emir over the territory of Afghan (see. Anglo-Afghan treaties 1919, 1921). Having established relations with a number of states, including Great Britain and Soviet Russia (see. Soviet-Afghan treaties and agreements), Amanullah Khan carried out a series of reforms aimed at overcoming the backwardness of the country. In 1923, the first constitution of Armenia was proclaimed, which fixed civil rights and freedoms. The economic reforms of Amanullah (the conversion of taxes into cash, the free sale and purchase of state lands, the expansion of secular education) were aimed at encouraging national entrepreneurship and strengthening the market principle and the role of commodity-money relations in the economic life of Amanullah. societies - tribal khans and Muslim leaders. In con. 1928 - early 1929 conservative opposition in the course of the anti-governments ennogo The uprising achieved the abdication of Amanullah and brought to power the emir Bachai Sakao (ruled under the name of Khabibullah), who canceled all the reforms of his predecessor. Oct. In 1929, the former minister of war in the government of Amanullah, the hero of the war for independence, Mohammed Nadir came to power. He took the name Nadir Shah , the title of king and founded a new dynasty. The constitution proclaimed under him (1931) consolidated the position of the Muslim clergy in the field of education and law and ensured the participation of the tribal nobility in state affairs. In the 1930s measures were taken to encourage industry and trade: merchant associations (shirkets) were created, and factory production arose. After the assassination of Nadir Shah (November 8, 1933), his son Mohammed was elevated to the throne. Zahir Shah However, real power was seized by his relatives, headed by the brother of Nadir Shah, Prime Minister Muhammad Hashim Khan, who established a despotic regime in Azerbaijan.

Before World War II, the influence of Germany and Italy increased in Azerbaijan, seeking to involve the country in their military plans. The activation of the Nazi agents, who acted in Armenia under the guise of advisers and consultants, posed a threat to Soviet and British interests in the region. In connection with the demand of the governments of the USSR and Great Britain (October 1941), the Afghan leadership stopped the activities of German agents. In World War II A. traditionally adhered to a policy of neutrality.

During the war, Armenia experienced serious economic difficulties due to the disruption of world economic ties. The deterioration of the economic situation caused discontent among the Pashtun tribes, who raised an anti-government uprising. Under these conditions, Prime Minister Hashim Khan resigned in 1946, and the government was headed by another uncle of the king, Mahmud Shah. The new cabinet proclaimed a course towards the liberalization of social and political life. Under him, free parliamentary elections were held (acted in 1949–52).

In con. 1940s - early. 1950s Opposition groups Vish Zalmiyan (Awakened Youth), Vatan (Motherland), and Nida-ye Khalq (Voice of the People) arose in Azerbaijan, demanding the democratization of the political system and the implementation of socioeconomic reforms. The leading role in them was played by small and medium entrepreneurs, the Afghan intelligentsia. The conservative forces of Afghan society (tribal leaders, religious leaders), in the context of the Afghan-Pakistani contradictions (since 1947), preferred to support the king's cousin, Gen.-l. Mohammed Daoud, who led the government from 1953.

The government of M. Daoud (1953–63) proclaimed a policy of “guided economy” in Azerbaijan. During the 1950s and 60s within its framework, state organizations in the field of foreign trade were established, state control was established over industrial enterprises and banks, economic development planning was introduced, and conditions were created for the concentration and centralization of national capital. A significant role in the economic life of A. in the 1950s-1960s. played the foreign policy of the government of M. Daud, who, after unsuccessful attempts to obtain military and economic assistance from the United States, turned to the USSR. The Soviet-Afghan agreements on economic (1955) and cultural (1960) cooperation made the USSR A.'s leading partner in the outside world. However, in the conditions of the Cold War, the Afghan leadership pursued a policy of non-alignment with military-political blocs and pushed the United States and Western European countries to economic rivalry with Soviet influence in Afghanistan.

M. Daud carried out a number of reforms in the public sphere in Armenia, in particular, he abolished the obligatory wearing of a veil by women. However, the activities of the opposition were brought to naught by forceful measures and were regularly suppressed. In 1963 M. Daud was dismissed. In 1964, a new constitution was adopted in Azerbaijan. On its basis, a gradual liberalization of socio-political life took place (“democratic experiment”): a private press came out, political parties functioned, and elections were held (1965, 1969). In 1965 was established People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan(PDPA), which proclaimed a course towards the construction of socialism. In 1967, it split into two factions - radical ("Khalq") and liberal ("Parcham").

Con. 1960s It was marked by an aggravation of Azerbaijan's domestic political problems and an increasingly clear ideological polarization—from Islamic fundamentalism to extreme leftist views. The problem of political self-determination of the eastern Pashtun tribes living south and southeast of "Durand line" and found themselves after the partition of British India (1947) within Pakistan. The Afghan-Pakistani conflicts, the instability of the composition of governments, the authoritarian political steps of the king led to the beginning. 1970s to a general political crisis, exacerbated by the drought of 1971–72. Under these conditions, a coup d'etat took place in Afghanistan, led by former Prime Minister M. Daud (17.07.1973). The monarchy was abolished and the country declared a republic.

Afghanistan under republican regimes (1973–92)

The coup of M. Daoud was supported by military and civil activists of the PDPA (Parcham faction). A number of its supporters took part in the creation of republican government bodies. However, during the 1970s M. Daud's leadership style became more and more conservative and authoritarian. The regime's gradual abandonment of socialist ideas and the removal of left-wing politicians from government posts were enshrined in a new constitution (adopted in February 1977), which consolidated the almost unlimited power of the president. A noticeable element of Azerbaijan's foreign policy was its estrangement from the USSR. M. Daud stepped up negotiations with Pakistan on the Pashtun problem, and also expanded and strengthened Afghanistan's relations with Iran and the countries of the Persian Gulf, which promised the Afghan government large financial assistance.

In 1977, the forces of the Afghan opposition - "Khalq" and "Parcham" - with the assistance of the USSR, united against the regime of M. Daoud. After a year of political assassinations, anti-government demonstrations, and arrests of the opposition, on 27 April 1978, left-wing army officers brought the PDPA, led by its leader N. M. Taraki, to power (see below). April Revolution 1978). The country was proclaimed the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (DRA). The new regime was actively supported by the Soviet leadership, which soon concluded with A. the Treaty of Friendship, Good Neighborliness and Cooperation (12/5/1978). In 1978–79, the PDPA regime carried out a series of radical socio-economic reforms that undermined the traditional economic foundations of the Afghans, which caused discontent among the general population. The situation in the country was soon aggravated by a new split in the PDPA. The radical extremist faction of the PDPA (“Khalk”), headed by Kh. Amin, relying on military circles, actually removed the liberal wing of the party, Parcham, led by B. Karmal, from power. The policy of mass purges and repressions in the PDPA and in the country as a whole was consistently carried out after the appointment of H. Amin to the post of head of government (March 1979). Overthrow and assassination of N. M. Taraki (Sept. 1979 - Oct. 1979) allowed H. Amin to assume key powers in the party and government of Afghanistan. In the summer and autumn of 1979, armed resistance to the PDPA regime took the form of spontaneous mass demonstrations both in Kabul and in the outlying provinces of the country.

Under these conditions, the USSR carried out an armed invasion of Afghanistan (December 25, 1979), the purpose of which was declared to be “assistance to the Afghan people in repelling external armed aggression” (see below). Afghan conflict 1979–1989). H. Amin's regime was liquidated (12/27/1979). B. Karmal was put in power, combining the posts of head of government and general secretary of the PDPA.

In the 1st floor. 1980s attempts by the government of B. Karmal to build “Soviet-style socialism” in Azerbaijan proved unsuccessful. Such a policy was opposed by a broad Islamic opposition, which received support not only b. h. population, but also Western countries led by the United States and its allies in the region. Resistance to the PDPA regime took the form of a large-scale civil war. More than 5 million refugees left the country.

With the advent of the former head of the secret services, A. Najibullah, to the post of general secretary of the PDPA (May 1986), the development of measures for national reconciliation and the liberalization of the socio-political and economic life of the country began. Najibullah was elected President of the Republic of Afghanistan, proclaimed under the new constitution (1987). However, the PDPA leader's calls for a compromise did not meet with a positive response from the leaders of the resistance, and his reforms could not lead the country out of the military-political impasse. The strengthening of the military-technical potential of the armed opposition, as well as the diplomatic pressure of Western countries and the democratization processes that took place in the USSR, put the Soviet and Afghan leadership in front of the need for negotiations with opponents of the regime. Throughout the 1980s. such negotiations were conducted under the auspices of the UN between the foreign ministers of A. and Pakistan. In con. 1980s A formula for an Afghan settlement was worked out - the withdrawal of Soviet troops in exchange for stopping the supply of weapons to the Mujahideen. The settlement agreement was signed on 14/4/1988, and the withdrawal of Soviet troops was completed on 15/2/1989. In the beginning. 1990s The country's leadership made significant efforts to reach a compromise with the interim Mujahideen government operating in Pakistan. On January 1, 1992, the USSR and the USA stopped supplying weapons to both sides, and in April. 1992 Opposition units occupied Kabul without a fight. The country was proclaimed the Islamic State of Afghanistan. Power passed into the hands of the leaders of the Mujahideen. S. Mojaddidi became president, who was replaced by B. Rabbani in the same year.

Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan

Soon a fierce armed struggle for power broke out in Azerbaijan between the leaders of the Mujahideen. In conditions when the government controlled only the capital region, the warlords divided power in the provinces. In the 1990s the political-administrative disintegration of Azerbaijan intensified. In a number of regions, pockets of regional and even local power arose. Arbitrariness, violence, banditry, interethnic conflicts have become a mass phenomenon. The country's economy was in a state of chaos and stagnation.

All R. 1990s The Taliban (young Islamic radicals trained in Pakistani madrasas) appeared on the political arena of Afghanistan. In 1994, the Taliban seized Kandahar, and in 1996 - Kabul, proclaiming the territory they occupied by the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, headed by Mullah Omar. They were opposed by the Northern Alliance (a coalition of various ethnic forces led by Ahmad Shah Massoud). The Taliban leaders established a strict theocratic regime in the territories they controlled, imposing restrictions on the public and political life within the framework of the “pure Islam” they preached. The usual political practice of the Taliban regime has become a massive violation of human rights, encouragement of the drug business, and the genocide of national minorities. Since 1996, the territory of A. has been used by Osama bin Laden and his organization Al Qaeda as a base for preparing violent actions against the "infidels". In con. 1990s Armenia was actually turned into a hotbed of international terrorist activity.

The assassination of the leader of the anti-Taliban forces, Ahmad Shah Massoud (September 9, 2001) and the terrorist attacks in the United States (September 11, 2001), which U. bin Laden was accused of organizing, caused a sharp anti-Afghan reaction from Western states. As a result of the military operation carried out in con. In 2001, the Taliban regime in Azerbaijan was liquidated by the forces of the anti-terrorist coalition led by the United States. Dec. 2001 At the conference of the leading political forces of Armenia in Bonn, the Provisional Administration of Armenia was formed, headed by Hamid Karzai, which proclaimed the main goal of restoring peace in the country and the creation of a democratic society. In June 2002, at a meeting of the Emergency Loya Jirga, the Transitional Government of Azerbaijan was formed, and H. Karzai was elected head of state and cabinet of ministers. In Jan. In 2004, a new constitution was adopted by A., which proclaimed civil rights and freedoms. Oct. 2004 H. Karzai was elected president of Armenia. More than 3 million refugees have returned to the country, but the process of Azerbaijan's recovery is proceeding extremely slowly. The remnants of the Taliban are conducting an armed struggle against the government of H. Karzai and the forces of the international anti-terrorist coalition. The territory of Azerbaijan is actively used for the production of narcotic drugs with their subsequent export abroad. Power in the provinces actually belongs to the field commanders of the Mujahideen, who are only nominally subordinate to the central government.

As tensions escalated, the presidential elections scheduled for June 2004 were postponed. In March, the command of the American contingent conducted a major anti-terrorist operation with the participation of units of the Afghan army in the areas bordering with Pakistan, which at the same time acted independently. These actions remained fruitless, while the redistribution of spheres of influence continued in the north and west of Armenia: clashes broke out between government troops and the militia of the governor Ismail Khan in Herat; the militia of General A.R. Dostum captured the province of Faryab and clashed with the troops of the governor of the province of Balkh, A.M. Nur. In August, Ismail Khan successfully resisted regular formations sent from Kabul in Shindand. In October, Karzai received 55.4% of the vote in the presidential elections and took office in December. His government set the task of limiting the arbitrariness of regional warlords, building an effective national security system, and continuing reconstruction.

The most important step towards the construction of new armed forces was the implementation of the program of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR) of the former Mujahideen, aimed simultaneously at strengthening the central government on the ground. At its 1st stage, by July 2005, over 250 units were disbanded, approx. 63 thousand fighters, more than 30 thousand units of heavy and light weapons were delivered to warehouses. However, more than 1,000 armed gangs continued to operate in the country (according to various estimates, from 60 to 100 thousand members). In June 2005, a decree was promulgated on the start of the 2nd stage of the program (“Disarmament of illegal armed groups”), which was supposed to be completed within a year. By September, the strength of the Afghan National Army (ANA), which was recruited on a voluntary basis and consisted of 5 regional commands and several corps, including separate brigades and battalions, reached 30 thousand people. By the end of the year, approx. 20 thousand military personnel of the so-called. international coalition forces.

The repeatedly postponed parliamentary elections were held in September 2005 and brought the predominance of independents and oppositionists (conservatives, Islamists and traditionalists): the largest factions formed the New A. party. (Yu. Kanuni), "Islamic Society A." (B. Rabbani, Ismail Khan and A. M. Nur), "National Movement A." (A. V. Masud), "National Islamic Movement A." (A. R. Dostum), "Party of Islamic Unity of the People of A." (M. Mohakkek). In December, a close ally of Karzai, S. Mojaddidi, was elected chairman of the upper house, and oppositionist Y. Kanuni, who won the election of the radical Islamist A. R. Sayyaf, was elected chairman of the lower house.

The remnants of the Taliban and al-Qaeda continued with weapons in their hands anti-government attacks from the territory of Pakistan. In the provinces, field commanders held positions, often not subordinate to Kabul. Due to economic instability, the production and trade of drugs increased, political violence and interethnic conflicts continued. The drug business has merged with crime in the form of individual representatives of local authorities and militants. The task of reunifying the country remained no less difficult, given the many confessional contradictions that had aggravated during the war years. The problem of refugees returning from abroad stood apart.

The inability of the Karzai cabinet to cope with these problems prompted the world community to return to the issue of increasing aid to A. and more actively participating in its restoration. At a conference in London (January - February 2006), 70 countries approved the allocation of 10.5 billion US dollars for the "Afghan package" - a 5-year development plan (disarmament of all illegal groups and completion of the construction of a national army; reduction of the area of ​​mined territories by 70 %; creation of an effective judicial system; strengthening the fight against drug trafficking and corruption; expanding the structure of education; solving social issues and fighting poverty; modernizing transport and energy infrastructure).

In the 2014 presidential election, A. Abdullah, ex-Minister of Foreign Affairs (from the National Coalition), and A. Ghani Ahmadzai, ex-Minister of Finance (non-partisan), were considered favorites among 8 candidates, who received 45 in the 1st round (April 2014), respectively % and 31%. In June, the 2nd round took place, after which a political crisis erupted, as Abdullah demanded a recount, which gave rise to disagreements about which body would carry out this procedure: Ghani Ahmadzai, who supported the idea of ​​​​centralized power, demanded the involvement of the CEC A., Abdullah , who defended the division of powers between the president and the prime minister, advocated the participation of international representatives. As a result of the mediation of ex-president Karzai and US Secretary of State John Kerry and under the auspices of the UN, a compromise was reached, in August the parties signed a Declaration on the joint formation of a government of national unity. According to the results announced in September, A. Ghani Ahmadzai won with 56.4% of the vote and became president; A. Abdullah, who received 43.5% of the vote, took the position of Chairman of the Executive Council.

Since January 2015, after the withdrawal of most of the international coalition forces from Afghanistan, the terrorist activities of the Taliban and the military confrontation between its supporters and government forces have intensified in the country.

economy

A. - one of the poorest countries in the world, heavily dependent on foreign aid and transit trade. The hostilities that have not stopped since 1979 have almost completely destroyed the economy; the consequences of the drought of 1998-2002 also have an effect. The only flourishing industry during the years of war and instability was the production of opium poppy (according to some estimates, it provides up to 1/3 of GDP). In Jan. In 2002, a conference of donor countries for the restoration of Azerbaijan was held in Tokyo (representatives of 61 countries participated, including Russia, the USA and EU countries, as well as the UN, the World Bank, the IMF, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and a number of other organizations), at which a program was developed assistance (4.5 billion dollars until 2006). As a result, there have been some positive trends in the development of the economy, especially in the agricultural sector. For the next few years, two main tasks: to encourage peasants to abandon the cultivation of opium poppy and to explore oil and natural gas deposits in the northern regions of the country.

GDP is $20 billion ($700 per capita; 2003). 60% of GDP is created in agriculture, 20% - in industry, 20% - in the service sector. Azerbaijan's external debt exceeds $8.5 billion (2004), a significant part of it falls on Russia.

Industry

Since 1967, the large gas field Khoja-Gugerdag has been developed, since 1982 - the Dzharkuduk field; both are located in the north of the country (near the town of Shibirgan). In the 1980s gas was mainly exported to the USSR, at the beginning. 21st century completely consumed within the country. Coal is also mined (Darayi-Suf deposit), oil (Angot), rock salt (near the city of Talukan), lapis lazuli (Sari-Sang), and building materials (Table 2).

Table 2. Extraction of the main types of mineral raw materials

Hydropower is the basis of Azerbaijan's energy industry: 84% of all electricity is generated at hydroelectric power plants, and 16% at thermal power plants (2002). The most significant hydroelectric power plants were built on the river. Kabul (Naglu and Surobai) and on the river. Helmand (Kajakay). The largest thermal power plant (running on natural gas) operates in Mazar-i-Sharif.

The creation of a manufacturing industry began in the 1930s: a cotton factory was built in Puli-Khumri, a sugar factory in Baghlan, and a wool-weaving factory in Kandahar. In the five-year plans for economic development (since 1956), emphasis was placed on the development of the public sector in the first place; a bakery, a house-building plant, an asphalt-concrete and car repair plants in Kabul, cement plants in Jabal-us-Siraj and Puli-Khumri, a nitrogen fertilizer plant in Mazar-i-Sharif, etc. were put into operation. 1960s - early. 1970s new enterprises of the food, textile and pharmaceutical industries began to operate. During the war years, most industrial enterprises were destroyed or stopped working. In the beginning. 21st century continue to operate enterprises for the production of fabrics (Kabul, Kandahar, Mazar-i-Sharif), soap and medicines (Kabul), furniture, shoes, miner. fertilizers (Mazar-i-Sharif) and cement (Gori, Jabal-us-Siraj) (Table 3). Hand-made production of carpets is developed (mainly in the north of the country).

Table 3. Production of the most important types of industrial products

Agriculture

The economy of Armenia is traditionally based on agriculture, which is dominated by small peasant farms. The total area of ​​agricultural land, including pastures, is approx. 62% of the country's territory, the share of arable land - 16%. Arable land is mainly occupied by grain crops, which are grown at an altitude of up to 2700 m. Harvest (2003; thousand tons) of wheat - 2686, barley - 345, corn - 298. Rice is grown on the plains and in the foothills (388 thousand tons in 2003) . The most fertile plots of land are located in a mosaic: in the north - in the valleys of the tributaries of the Amu Darya, in the east - in the valleys of the Kabul, Logar, Sarobi and Lagman rivers, in the central part - in the Middle Afghan mountains, in the south - in the Helmand vilayat, in the west - in the Herat vilayat . Sugar beets, cotton, oilseeds and sugar cane are also grown. Horticulture (apricots, peaches, pears, plums, cherries, pomegranates, citrus fruits), viticulture, melon growing are developed; grow almonds and walnuts. In the 1980s about half of the arable land was irrigated (there were underground drainage galleries with wells, as well as a system of ditches fed from rivers and underground sources). A significant part of the irrigation facilities were damaged during the hostilities, the cultivation of the fields became dangerous due to mines. In the 1980s–90s. opium poppy became the leading cash crop, A. became the world's main supplier of opium (1670 tons in 1999, estimate).

Livestock breeding, mainly sheep (8.8 million heads, including Karakul breed, in the north of the country) and goats (6 million heads; 2003), is mainly occupied by nomadic tribes. In winter, herds graze on the plains, in summer - on mountain (at an altitude of 1000 to 3500 m) pastures. Also bred (thousand heads; 2003) cattle (zebu and buffalo 2600), donkeys 920, camels 290, horses 104.

Transport and communications

There are practically no railways - 9.6 km long branches have been laid from Kushka (Turkmenistan) to Torgundi and 15 km from Termez (Uzbekistan) to Hairatan (it is planned to be extended to Mazar-i-Sharif). The length of roads is 21 thousand km, including 2.8 thousand km with a hard surface (1999). During the period of hostilities, the condition of roads deteriorated, and practically no repairs were carried out. The use of horse-drawn transport (camels, horses, donkeys) is common. Of particular importance is the ring road Kabul - Kandahar - Herat - Maymene - Mazar-i-Sharif - Khulm - Kabul, which connects the most important cities of the country. The only navigable river is the Amu Darya. The main river ports are Hairatan and Sherkhan. Two oil pipelines have been laid in Azerbaijan: from Turkmenistan to Shindand and from Uzbekistan to Bagram (both are inactive). The length of gas pipelines is 387 km. 10 airfields with paved runways, Kabul International Airport, 5 helicopter airfields (2004).

Foreign economic relations

The total value of A.'s legal exports is $98 million; imports exceeded $1 billion (2002). The main export items are fruits, nuts, carpets, wool, cotton, dressed and undressed animal skins, precious and semi-precious stones. The main buyer countries of goods from Azerbaijan: Pakistan (28.6%), India (27.6%), Finland (6.1%), Belgium (5.1%), Germany (5.1%), Russia (4.1%) and the USA (4.1%). Imported means of production, food, textiles, petroleum products, etc., in the main. from Pakistan (24.3%), South Korea (14%), Japan (9.1%), USA (8.7%), Germany (5.7%) and Kenya (5.6%).

Foreign tourism has been actively developing since con. 1960s before the Afghan conflict of 1979–89 (in 1978 more than 100,000 foreign tourists visited Azerbaijan).

healthcare

Total health spending is 8.2% of GDP (2014). There are 26 doctors per 100 thousand inhabitants (2014), 18 paramedical personnel (by 2010). The incidence of diphtheria was 854 cases, measles - 2486, whooping cough - 1439.

Sport

Since ancient times, equestrian sports, archery, fencing with sticks, pushing stones, etc. have been cultivated and popular in the country. The most developed and popular sports are wrestling, athletics, football, and field hockey.

The National Olympic Committee was created in 1935 and recognized by the IOC in 1936. Athletes made their debut at the Olympic Games in Berlin (1936); subsequently participated in all the Olympic Games (with the exception of 1952, 1976, 1984, 1992, 2000). R. Niklai won two bronze Olympic medals (on 1.1.2016) in taekwondo competitions in Beijing (2008, weight category up to 58 kg) and London (2012, up to 68 kg). Athletes A. participated in 13 Asian Games; (as of January 1, 2016) 5 silver and 6 bronze medals were won. The most popular sports are: football, field hockey, volleyball, basketball, boxing, chess, national wrestling - pahlavani. Since 1996, the A. chess team has been participating in the World Chess Olympiads.

Education

The education system of A. was completely destroyed during the years of civil war and the rule of the Taliban. In 2002, an emergency plan for the restoration of the education system "Back to School" was prepared, designed for 2 years. Education is administered by the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Higher Education. Main regulatory documents: Law on Education (2008), Law on Higher Education (2013). In 2015, a plan was developed for the development of the education system in Azerbaijan until 2020. The education system includes: 6-year primary, 6-year secondary (3-year incomplete and 3-year complete) education. Education is free and separate at all levels. Primary education covered approx. 100% children, average - 46.8% (2013; data from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics). The literacy rate of the population over 15 is 24.2% (2015). In many regions, the problem of gender equality remained unresolved. According to the Ministry of Education in 2015, out of 11.5 million Afghan children attending school, 4.5 million (42%) were girls.

Secondary vocational education (2-5 years of study) is carried out on the basis of an incomplete secondary school. Post-secondary vocational education programs (grades 13-14) are implemented in vocational colleges, teacher training colleges and Islamic schools. The qualifications they award are generally designed to provide access to the labor market. In the system of higher education, there are: Kabul University (founded in 1932, closed in the 1990s; resumed classes in 2002); state universities: Medical (1932), Polytechnic (1951, current status since 1963), Pedagogical named after Burhanuddin Rabbani (leads history since 1964, current status since 2002), American (2006), National Defense named after Marshal Fahim (2005, current name and status since 2014) - all in Kabul; Nangarhar University (city of Jalalabad, founded in 1963, originally trained medical personnel), Balkh, Herat (1988), Kandahar (1990) universities; Agricultural Science and Technology University (2014, Kandahar Province), as well as universities in Bamiyan, Badakhshan and Khost and other provinces. There are also private universities: Kardan (2003), Bakhtar (2005), Karvan (2008), RANA (2009), Salam (2009) and others. Libraries: Ministry of Education (1920), Department of Press and Information (1931) public - in Kabul (1920) and Herat, etc. National Archives A. (1890). Kabul National Museum (has a history since 1919; closed in the mid-1990s - 2001; reopened in 2004), Herat National Museum (1925), Museum of Islamic Art in Ghazni (1966; restored in 2004 - 07) and others. National Gallery of Art (2003).

media

The media system in Afghanistan, which was practically destroyed during the rule of the Taliban, has been undergoing a process of restoration since 2001. There are (2004) state television, radio broadcasting and a news agency in the country. In addition, there are 3 independent broadcasting companies (including the most influential - "Radio Kabul"), a private television company and a private news agency "Afghan Islamic Press" ("Afghan Islamic Press" ). More than 260 newspapers and other periodicals are published.

Literature

The literature of A. develops in two languages ​​- Pashto and Dari. Pashto literature also exists in part of Pakistan, Dari literature is the heir to the Persian classical literary tradition (see Iran, Literature section). Among the earliest surviving monuments of Pashtun literature is the "Cadastral Book" of Sheikh Mali (15th century). By the 16th century refers creativity Bayezida Ansari, founder of the Roshanite sect. The heyday of classical literature in Pashto falls on the 17th-18th centuries, when 4 main poetic schools were formed: "Roshani" (calling for the struggle against the conquerors and colored by the ideology of Sufism), Khushkhal Khan Khattak(who professed national liberation ideas and used secular forms of poetry), Abdurrahman Momand(developing Sufi themes) and Abdulhamid Momand(characterized by the complexity of artistic images and poetic speech).

In the 19th century In connection with the political consolidation of the peoples of Azerbaijan, a bilingual literature of Azerbaijan was formed in Dari and Pashto (the works of panegyric poets Kabuli Vasiri, Tarshizi Shahab, and A. Faiz Muhammad; epic poets A. Ghulam Muhammad, H. Kashmiri, emir Abdurrahman, and poetess A. Durrani, poets R. Badakhshi, Y. Mukhlis). In the beginning. 20th century modern Armenian literature, connected with enlightenment tendencies, was born (Mahmud-bek Tarzi, G. M. Afgan, Davi Abdulkhadi, and M. Salih). In 1936 Pashto was declared the second official language along with Dari. In 1937 the Afghan Academy of Language and Literature was established. New prose genres are mastered, in particular the story (works by S. M. Alamshahi, Miraminuddin Ansari, G. M. Zhvandai - in Dari; B. Kushkaki and K. M. Rafik - in Pashto).

In literature A. 2nd floor. 20th century social problems prevailed (poetry Ulfata Gul-Pachi and A. Benava, essays by K. Khadim and S. Rishtin, fiction by N. M. Taraki, Muhammaddin Zhvak, Abdullah Bakhtani). Abdulhak Betab, H. Khalili (in Dari), J. G. Jeylani, Sh. Majruh, M. S. Psarlay (in Pashto) remain committed to traditional motifs; modern forms are mastered by S. Laik (in Pashto and Dari), Sh. Barik (in Dari). New directions are being formed in modern prose: the romantic (A. Pazhvak and G. G. Khaybari), and then the realistic (G. H. Faal, F. A. Parvana, N. Khatir, I. Khair, R. Rakhim, A . Khabib, K. Mazhari). After the PDPA regime came to power, the Writers' Union of Azerbaijan was created (1980), and the Zhvandun (Life) magazine became its official organ. By this time, the work of prose writers A. Usman (Kuzagara), A. R. Zaryab, Afganpura Amin, A. Kargara, Z. Anzor, B. Bajaurai, Habib Kadir, I. Atayi. N. Hafiz, N. Takhuri, A. Takor, A. Khazan continued in the poetry of the classical tradition. V. Bakhtari, L. Nazimi, S. K. Tufani, A. Naibi, F. Farda turned to new poetic techniques and genres. The themes of social struggle, revolutionary pathos are characteristic of the poetry of D. Panjsheri.

War of the last quarter of the 20th century. led to the emigration of a significant part of the Afghan writers. Outstanding representatives of Pashtun literature abroad are the novelist S. Shpun, the poets A. Jahani, P. M. Karavan, S. Siddiqi, and M. Parvin Fayzzada.

Architecture and fine arts

The artistic culture of the peoples of ancient and medieval Africa developed in close connection with the cultures of the peoples of Central Asia, India, and Iran. The territory of North Africa, as part of Bactria and Tokharistan, constituted a single historical and cultural region with the southern regions of Central Asia; the territory south of the Hindu Kush was more closely connected with Hindustan. In con. 4th - 3rd millennium BC e. in South Africa, early agricultural settlements (Mundigak) arose with mud-brick buildings, painted pottery, and clay figurines of animals and women—fertility goddesses; from the 2nd millennium BC e. with the growth of these settlements, defensive walls and monumental structures were erected (a building with closed semi-columns - “corrugations” on the facade in Mundigak).

In the oases of Northern Africa in the 2nd millennium BC. e. settlements were also surrounded by walls and included monumental buildings (“round temple” and “palace” in Dashly-3), decorated with pilasters, in some rooms - with alabaster mosaics with a floral pattern; in settlements and burial grounds, copper and bronze seals with geometric motifs, less often with cut-out images of a winged goddess and animals, metal pins with sculptural tops in the form of a protome (the front part of the figure) of rams and bull heads with a human face, etc. were found. In style, the art of A. 4 - 2nd millennium BC e. included in the area of ​​artistic cultures of the Ancient Near East, but includes elements of the Harappan culture. The Achaemenid period (6th–4th centuries BC) includes monumental structures discovered by archaeologists in the settlements of North Africa (the round “temple” of Kutlug-Tepe, the “summer” and “winter” palaces in Altyn-10), developing the ancient Bactrian tradition, as well as the main part of the products of the so-called. Amu Darya treasure. During the period of the Greco-Bactrian kingdom (250–140 BC), one of the schools of Hellenistic art developed in Northern Armenia (the most significant monuments were found at Ai-Khanoum). The first centuries BC e. - the first centuries A.D. e. rich burials of the leaders of nomadic tribes (Tillya-Tepe, Northern Asia) are dated, where approx. 20 thousand pieces of jewelry (gold, inserts made of turquoise, carnelian, lapis lazuli, etc.), whose pictorial and ornamental forms testify to the assimilation by local craftsmen of the ancient Middle Eastern, Indian, Far Eastern, steppe (see Surkhkotal, associated with the dynastic cult. Numerous monuments of Buddhist religious architecture of the 1st-8th centuries and related works of monumental sculpture, painting, ornamental decoration.Land monasteries (near Balkh, Kunduz, in Hadd), like other buildings, were built from mud and pakhsa, less often from stone, had courtyards with a massive stupa and rooms with beamed or vaulted roofs, from the 3rd-4th centuries domes appeared on tromps... A cave monastery was formed in Bamiyan, in the murals and stucco decoration of which the influence of the art of India and Iran is noticeable.

After the Arab conquests (7th–8th centuries) and the spread of Islam, Armenian art developed in line with the artistic culture of Muslim countries. Among the outstanding monuments of medieval architecture are the Nu-Gumbed domed mosque in Balkh (10th century); palace complex Lashkari Bazaar residences of the Ghaznavids and Ghurids in Bust (11th–12th centuries); star-shaped memorial towers and the palace of Masud III in Ghazni; stepped, round minaret in the village. Jam (between 1153 and 1202); Cathedral Mosque and Musalla Ensemble in Herat.

In the medieval art of Armenia, enriched by constant contacts with the states of Central Asia, Iran, and partly India, distinctive schools developed. The most significant school of decorative and fine arts was formed in Herat (metal processing, carpet weaving, woodcarving, etc.). From the beginning 15th c. the court library-workshop (kitabkhane) worked here, with which the development of Herat school miniatures, works of K. Behzad, his most famous student Qasim Ali and other famous miniaturists, calligraphers and ornamentalists. Subtle color harmony, refined linear drawing, virtuoso calligraphy and exquisite ornamentation of Herat manuscripts had a great influence on Iranian, Central Asian and Indian masters of the handwritten book. In the beginning. 16th century the leading role in the artistic life of A. passed to Kabul as the residence of Babur, the founder of the Mughal dynasty. From Ser. 18th century significant construction was carried out in Kandahar (the 8-sided domed mausoleum of Ahmad Shah Durrani). Folk architecture in A. 18–20 centuries. it is similar in type to residential buildings in Central Asia and Pakistan; domed houses are common in many areas.

A new stage in the development of architecture and fine arts began with the con. 1920s, when a project for the development of new districts of Kabul was developed under the leadership of the French architect A. Godard. Masters from other countries, including Russian ones, took part in the formation of Afghan architecture. From con. 1970s intensive construction of residential and public buildings, schools, kindergartens, hydraulic structures was carried out. According to the general plan of 1978, a TV center, a hospital, and a complex of buildings of the Medical Institute were built in Kabul. In separate monumental structures of the 1st floor. - ser. 20th century along with modern architectural forms and new materials (glass, concrete), traditional ones were used (Abidaya Maiwand column in Kabul with decoration of blue tiles and black marble, architect Ismatullah Seraj, 1950s). The School of Fine and Applied Arts and Crafts, founded in Kabul in 1921 and headed by Abdulgafur Breshna, and the work of his students and followers—Gausuddin, Khair Mohammed, Vafa, and others—played an important role in the visual arts. Afghan artists participated in international art exhibitions. After 1978, various forms of propaganda (poster, newspaper and magazine graphics) and amateur art developed intensively. Since 1989, a trend has become popular in painting, associated with the revival of the traditions of the Herat miniature. Floral motifs predominate in the decoration of mosques and public buildings.

During the reign of the Taliban, a number of the most valuable monuments of art on the territory of Azerbaijan were destroyed (Bamiyan and others). Traditional crafts continue to occupy a large place in modern art (Herat glass-making, Pashtun painted lacquerware, jewelry, etc.), and carpet weaving remains an important Afghan export.

Music

Musical culture in antiquity was associated with Achaemenid, Bactrian, Kushan, Sasanian traditions. known to exist in the first century AD. e. Zoroastrian cult chants. In the Buddhist cult centers of Bamiyan and Hadda, images of musicians were preserved. Islam had a significant impact on musical culture (this was manifested, in particular, in the traditionally low social status of a musician and dancer). Since the 15th century, with the transfer of the center of musical culture of the Timurids from Samarkand to Herat, a classical musical art has been taking shape, combining the traditions of Arabic (based on the maqam system) and Indian (based on the principle of raga) music; a theory of music oriented towards it was born (for example, A. Jami, the author of the “Treatise on Music”, the 2nd half of the 15th century, lived in Herat; parts of the treatise “Dastarnama” - “The Book of the Turban” by H. Khattak, 1665 are devoted to music ). The flourishing of classical music in Armenia took place between the 17th and 19th centuries.

The musical culture of modern Azerbaijan, due to the ethnic, linguistic, religious, and sociocultural heterogeneity of the population, is a complex phenomenon. For centuries, music has developed in close interaction with the Arab-Iranian, Indian, Middle Asian cultures, and before the beginning. 21st century The southern regions of Azerbaijan remained close to the music of Pakistan, the western regions of Iran, and the northern regions of Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. Pashtuns, Balochs, Tajiks, Nuristanis, Turkmens, Pamirs, various nomadic tribes have independent traditions. Cult music is associated with the traditions of normative Islam and Sufi brotherhoods; In the central regions of Azerbaijan, the Khazarians have specific genres associated with Shiism. Folklore is represented by labor songs (performed during digging ditches, harvesting, preparing firewood in the mountains, working at a mill) and ensemble instrumental music; music of rituals - calendar, healing, wedding (the crying of the bride babulala is specific; a song performed when the bride's hands are painted with henna); women's home music making; comic songs laba ("game"). Music is accompanied by caravan routes, performances of snake charmers. The vocal genre of landy is widespread (known since the 8th–9th centuries, in the Pashto language, in 2 text varieties: women's love-lyric songs bazmi and men's warlike songs). Popular art, sarinda, archaic arc harp (so-called Kafir), dulcimer santur, chang; wind instruments - nay, tuyduk, surnay, koshnay, karnay, binbaja bagpipes; percussion - membranophones doira, daf, double-sided drum dhol.

At the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, with the penetration of European instruments (piano, mandolin, accordion, the so-called Indian harmonica) and other elements of European musical culture into Azerbaijan, new trends emerged. Forms of musical theater began to develop, urban song styles became widespread (singers Sarahang, Y. Kosimi, Nashenas, A. Zoir, Hafizullah Khyal enjoyed nationwide popularity), various performing groups were organized: the Orchestra of National Instruments of the Kabul Radio (1946), the Variety Orchestra (1961), Song and Dance Ensemble "Nargis". Among the performers on traditional instruments are Mohammed Omar (rubob), Abdulmajid (tanbur), M. N. Mazari (gijak), M. Hussein (surnay). Since 1978 festivals of the arts of the peoples of Azerbaijan have been held, and the Union of Artists was created (with a music section, 1980). Many Afghan musicians studied in the USSR. After 1992, all forms of recreational music were banned; a number of musicians left the country (for example, the famous classical singer Makhvash emigrated to the USA). In the 2000s the process of revival of religious and folk music began.

Cinema

The film Like an Eagle by F. M. Khayerzade (1963, in collaboration with India) is considered the first film in Azerbaijan, although foreign films have been shown in cinemas since 1915. Development", 1969, "The Secret of Happiness", 1970), and feature films ("Temporary Workers", 1970, "Mother's Order", 1973, both directed by A. Kh. Alil; "Difficult Days" by V. Latifi, " Rabia-Balkhi" by M. Nadiri, both - 1974; "Statues are laughing", 1976, dir. Shafik). An attempt to modernize the film industry in Azerbaijan was made after the so-called. April Revolution 1978 (“Hot Summer in Kabul” by A. I. Khamraev with the participation of Latifi; 1983, together with the Mosfilm film studio). Afghan students were educated at VGIK, and full-length feature films were created mainly at film studios in the USSR. At the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries, after the overthrow of the Taliban regime (1996–2001), the support of the international creative intelligentsia contributes to the formation of the Afghan film industry itself (“Osama” by S. Barmak, 2002, IFF Prize at Cannes; “Earth and Ashes” by A. Rahimi , 2004). In cooperation with various countries of the East and West, the films of Barmak (The Opium War, 2008), Rahimi (The Stone of Patience) and N. Khaya (documentary film My Afghanistan: Life in the Forbidden Zone; both - 2012), X Muruvata (“Flying Without Wings”, 2014) and others.